Category: Notes from the sticks

I THINK our spirits need lifting this week – mine certainly do. So here is one of the most incredible sights in nature, and one of the most inexplicable. Everyone … Continue readingMarvellous murmurations

WE still haven’t had a frost here in Lancashire, but it surely can’t be long. Meanwhile many animals are preparing to deal with winter by stoking up to hibernate. For … Continue readingThe big sleep

WE lived for a few years in Southend-on-Sea in Essex. Many probably think of it as a ‘kiss-me-quick’ kind of place, and it is true that it has lots of … Continue readingArcades, kiss-me-quick hats and a wildlife spectacular

WHEN my children were small, they used to be amused by my tales of the old days before fridges, washing machines and central heating. I was born four years after … Continue readingThe Frost Report

THE stream outside our house has a small waterfall with a pool beneath it. It is one of the few deep places on the watercourse, so it is a refuge … Continue readingHerons, scourge of our stream

SINCE we moved to Lancashire from London a few years ago, I have been intrigued to see a number of plaques on Victorian and Edwardian terrace houses. These are not … Continue readingA plaque on all our houses

WHEN I read Boris Johnson’s crazy announcement that he intends every home in Britain to be run on wind power within ten years, my heart sank. It is the death knell … Continue readingIt’s an ill wind

A DRAWBACK to living in the country is that without the background hum of traffic, noise carries over far greater distances. For example there are a pair of dogs kept … Continue readingWhy I threatened to set fire to myself

IT always makes me sad when someone expresses a fear of or loathing for spiders. They are the most amazing creatures, and without them we would be swatting away flies … Continue readingOur eight-legged friends

I DON’T suppose many share this view, but I have rather a soft spot for crows. They are beautiful birds and I have been entertained over the summer by a … Continue readingHard times in the crows’ nest